week adventure to the Galapagos Islands and Amazon River. She shared beautiful pictures and artifacts from her various stops along the way. The 3rd graders got to feel alpaca fur and hear some musical instruments and exotic bird calls.

​ Thank you, Mrs. Emenger, for such an exciting, educational, and hands-on lesson! ​Students were so excited by all that they learned!

On Tuesday, November 8th, Rose Drive kindergartners were treated to a special assembly and visit from Officer Anderson (Savannah and Cash Anderson’s dad) and a special member of the K-9 unit, Habo, a German shepherd. Students learned the many complicated steps and processes involved in training a police dog for the advanced and sometimes dangerous tasks they are required to perform. Students were fascinated to see for themselves the amazing sense of smell dogs possess as Habo was able to detect specific scents of the objects he was directed to retrieve. Officer Anderson provided some tips and clues for training dogs, allowing Habo to show off with some of his many tricks he has learned over the years - in German of all languages! Obedience and strong listening skills are key for these dogs. A special thank you to Officer Anderson and his delightfully smart dog, Habo, for this informative, fun, and fascinating assembly.

October is usually accompanied by notions of costumes and candy, but Mr. Armbrust's 3rd Grade Class focused their energies this past month on the needs of others, specifically disadvantaged children around the world. Collectively, they managed to raise a total of $250.48 this past month for UNICEF's Trick or Treat program. This money will go towards providing children with clean, safe water, lifesaving nutrition, and vaccines for disadvantaged children around the world. All with the goal in mind to end preventable deaths of children. Way to go Third Grade!

A lesson on the famous inventor Elon Musk captured Rose Drive third grader Braydon Bittel's interest so vividly, that he was inspired to go home that same day and create his very own solar powered invention. He calls it his "Solar Powered Rover." Based on looks alone, it is clear this is an unusual invention, but not only does Braydon's rover look like something from out of this world, it actually works! Using the solar panels he attached to the back of the rover, and placing the contraption in direct sunlight, the rover actually begins to move forward - and with impressive speed! The answer to the question, "How long did it take to think up and build you invention?" might surprise many - one afternoon! Braydon is excited to continue to fine tune and improve on the initial product, and we are equally as excited to learn about the final outcome! Way to go Braydon!

Rose Drive First Graders in Mrs. Santa Maria’s class had a blast participating in a variety of creative activities. Students had fun perfecting their aim with the witch hat ring toss, and using their lungs to see whose spider could move the fastest in the straw blowing spider races. Of course, they also got to enjoy some delicious treats, including their personally decorated cookies and popcorn “spooky” hands. Testing their ability to hold their breath proved a challenge as they competed against one another to add as many bats into the bowl as they could, using nothing but the mouths and a straw. What a fun and clever way to celebrate the season’s many exciting themes.

Mrs. Osborn's math class combined learning and the spirit of Halloween in a recent unique lesson. Using Skittles, the students added, subtracted, and multiplied fractions. Additionally,they created graphs, computed greater than and less than totals, and solved word problems. Can you think of a more delicious way to reinforce skills being taught in the class?

The last week of October featured Red Ribbon Week at Rose Drive. Students were encouraged to make healthy choices, say “No” to drugs, and stand up to bullies all week, with daily reminders in the form of themed dress up days. Featured are pictures of two of those themed days: “Don’t Get Mixed Up in Drugs,” for which students wore mismatched clothing, and “I ‘must - ache’ you not to do drugs” for which students and staff donned their most creative mustaches in our commitment to remain drug and bully-free.

Kindergarten students in Mrs. Rogers' class took Mustache Day even further by

inviting a guest speaker, Mr. Seemore Bones, to teach them about the human skeleton! What a good sport, he even dressed up for Mustache Day (picture included)!

While our originally scheduled K-9 Assembly, led by police officers from both Placentia PD and OC Sheriff Dept., was rained out, Deputy Holmes and Officer Boyd stopped by the following day to hand out stickers and chat with students about their commitment to "staying drug free." Featured is a picture of students pasting their hand prints to our school-wide poster, providing a visual reminder of the important and valuable commitment they made.

As you can see, students truly went full out by showing their support and school spirit. An important message with a touch of fun – the perfect balance!

A special THANK YOU to our Red Ribbon Committee and parent volunteers for their combined efforts in making this such a valuable and memorable week for our students.